Eurozone edges towards two-speed Europe

Euronews

The eurozone will move closer to creating a two-speed Europe if MEPs and the 17 countries using the single currency back plans by the European Commission for closer economic integration.

Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said: “In the next six to 18 months we are putting an ambitious work program including the start of the fiscal capacity for the euro area. We propose to rule this fiscal capacity initially in a convergence and competiviness instrument”

More centralised power at the European level and more money is the answer, according to Guntramm Wolff, deputy director at the Bruegel think-tank.

“I think it’s a real step towards a two speed Europe, that’s for sure. We are going to have a very strong eurozone budget which is quite big compare to eu budget, and we are going to have the right institutions for that, including some form of parlamentary control at eurozone level,” he said.

The proposal for deeper economic ties goes hand-in-hand with plans for a European banking union, to be discussed at an EU summit in Brussels in two weeks time.